Le Chevalier
by The Sky Pirate Girl
Summary: Her salvation will be his vengeance.


**A/N: **The story is inspired by the legend of Lagardère. If you're interested in the book, it's called _Le Bossu_ (The Hunchback). As an allusion to Paul Féval's fabulous work, this fanfic is titled _Le Chevalier_ (which in French means _The Knight_).

It is dedicated to Melisa (**Missyluv**), without whom this story wouldn't have been the same as it is (because she beta-ed it and, most of all, her wonderful fanfictions made me fall in love with the main pairing here).

**Words count: **~12k words

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**Le Chevalier**

_Part 1:_

She was overwhelmed by everything around her - the chilling darkness of the late night, the flickering light of near lamp-post, the coldness of the wall behind which she was hiding, the voices of the men in the alley…

Quistis wondered what it was that bound her so to the spot, leaving her completely frozen. Was it merely her curiosity to hear this tale, the almost-legend and oddysey of Laguna Loire? Was it some premonition? Was it something else?

Her thoughts were interrupted as her not-really-friend, Luciano, began speaking to those two peculiar men named Zabac and Seagill and she listened of Laguna's travails once more.

A sudden shout from Luciano - '_Who's there?__'_ - and the spell was broken.

Before she could run away, he grasped her hand and she could see the surprise in his eyes as he realized who she was -

But perhaps this story ought not to begin from here. For it to be completely grasped and appreciated, perhaps it should begin with the threads that would unravel it, and not with the knot.

Let's begin again.

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Quistis Trepe had spent all her life on the road - traveling from this town to that city, and when she was old enough, participating in the plays.

She knew she was an orphan, but the family that was taking care of her was so loving that she grew into a happy person.

Her days were easy and simple, filled with day-to-day bumps and laughs. There was nothing dark in her life, except two mysteries. The first was, well, a question almost any orphaned child would wonder: who were her true parents? She did not spend much time thinking about that, since, as said previously- she was quite happy with her life. Still, the question lingered sometimes.

The second mystery revolved around one of the men in the troupe of traveling artists she belonged to. The troupe consisted of six people - her mother figure, Ellone; Ellone's sister, Raine; her father figure, Musica; and Irvine, another boy Musica and Ellone had taken in (she did not want to think of him as her brother figure, since she fancied him a little); and this man they all called Luciano.

Luciano was a relaxed and laid-back person. He had a great sense of humor and _really_ great hair. He was the model optimist, and yet there was something in his eyes (whenever he would look at her through the crackle of the fire) that whispered to her tales of some kind of a forgotten language. He always looked at her like he knew something she did not, which sometimes ate at her like an irksome fly.

It was also quite funny, how, despite knowing him all her life, she had never really gotten to _know_ him (though she did know that he loved to write, seeing as he wrote all their plays, and that he hated snow). He just liked to keep to himself, she supposed. Build an emotional wall, just like herself.

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The days in the Academy were nothing short of boring for Laguna Loire. Each day he went to courses he'd already taken, ate the blatant food of the scruffy cooks, and his only relief was found in his evenings with his two best friends, Kiros and Ward. They'd train swordsmanship and go on midnight rides or simply visit the near town's brothel, which was also quite alright with him. If it was a Saturday, he'd send a letter to his patron and uncle, Archibald, as per routine, and go to bed.

At the age of almost-eighteen, he already had a lover - the beautiful singer, Julia Heartily, who had him around her pretty middle finger. He knew she didn't love him, but - oh well - he was a dilettante in love.

Laguna Loire's life had never been a complicated, or uneasy one. None of his parents had died, and - although his little sister, Patty, was as kind as an irate chocobo- his family generally wasn't an unpleasant one.

When he became fourteen, he followed his childhood dream to go to Galbadia Academy - which was on the other end of the world.

You see, Laguna Loire came from a small, dull village where nothing much interesting ever happened. He had an uncle in Esthar who had somehow managed to crawl from the mud of the province and make a successful career as a lawyer. Archibald, upon hearing his nephew's correct assumptions that there had to be more to life than milking cows and chasing after sheep in the pretty, green fields of their home village, had decided to give the young boy a financial hand and aid him in his quest to become a fine soldier.

Laguna Loire did _not_ become a fine soldier. He was lazy, undisciplined and unorganized. He could follow orders, yes, or at least _attempt_ to follow them, seeing as the poor boy was the unfortunate mix of clumsiness and lack of any kind of luck what-so-ever.

This luck was about to change on his actual eighteenth birthday, January 3rd, to be exact.

Was it for better or for worse? I leave this up to you, dear reader, to later decide.

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On the first day of summer, several important things happened in Quistis' life.

First: They entered Esthar and parked their caravan in a plaza near the city center.

Second: Irvine kissed her and she kissed him back (despite her being almost eighteen, she had never kissed anyone before).

Third: She did not feel the famous butterflies in her stomach.

Fourth: The famous flying Academy, Balamb Garden landed just outside of Esthar (Esthar had given up on its policy of isolationism and the city was flourishing from the attention).

Fifth: While performing the _'Sorceress' Knight'_ (which was a success there, too, by the way) she saw some strange-looking men in midnight blue uniforms.

Sixth: The same night, Quistis - indulging on her curiosity about Luciano - followed him down the streets of Esthar, where he met with two people who were most probably his old friends (judging by the way they were acting).

Seagill and Zabac, he'd called them.

Even though she had been taught better than to eavesdrop, she was so captured by the Luciano enigma (thus she had dubbed it), that she couldn't help but hide behind a dark corner and listen to the conversation that was about to unravel.

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"Laguna, dear, would you go to the Headmaster's office once you finish your breakfast? He wanted to talk to you about something." Ms. Fall, his favorite teacher, told him in the cafeteria as she passed him and his friends by.

Ms. Fall was a peculiar woman - she wielded the bow and the arrows as well as she wielded the microphone and the dresses (she had worked in a Burlesque at some point).

Laguna looked at Kiros and Ward's worried expressions and shrugged. He stood up and wordlessly went to the Headmaster's office.

Once inside, the boy shivered from the heavy atmosphere. The most important members of the teacher's council were there, all with the grave expression one had when their dog had died.

"What's the glitch?" Laguna asked all these high-placed people and as soon as the words left his mouth, he winced. _Darn it, I did it again! Why don't I ever think things through before I say something?_His leg cramped up (it always did so when he was nervous).

The Headmaster and the Deputy shared a look that was probably some kind of a non-verbal conversation. It made Laguna even more flustered.

"Mr. Loire..." the Deputy began. "You've been here for four wonderful years, correct? During them you've expressed mediocre knowledge on the theoretical part of your studies, high stamina, but... unfortunately, not so favorable marks on the practice field. You've failed your SeeD exam three times already and the program only offers as many."

Laguna felt a dark, chilly shadow settle within his chest.

"So, what does that mean?"

The Deputy sighed.

"It means that you either will have to enroll in a new program - though, I have to warn you that it would be difficult for you since SeeD is the only training you've chosen to take so far - or leave."

After such news, Laguna naturally felt obliged to write a prompt letter to his patron later that day, even though it was decidedly _not_ a Saturday. He soon received a short reply which informed him that his uncle, Archibald, was tired of paying the fees of his good-for-nothing nephew, who was obviously not suited for a place as prestigious as Galbadia, and was now regretting bitterly every gil invested in him.

A letter of such fashion obviously cut into the boy deeper than his uncle probably ever realized when he wrote it, but Laguna was generally a cheerful sort of a fellow, so he quickly buried his broken dreams and hopes into the far corners of his heart and put on a smile, bid goodbye to every teacher, friend and foe - and to Julia, who told him she would never consider marrying him without the promised high salary of a SeeD - and went to seek his fortune. He briefly thought about returning to live with his parents, but such a pathetic idea was quickly banished from his mind.

No, Laguna Loire would never give up on making something out of himself.

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"We thought you were dead!" One of the men exclaimed.

"Well, guys - What can I tell you? I'm just too amazing to die," Lucianо joked.

"What happened to you? As you'd say yourself: neither a bone, nor a news from you for the last seventeen years!" The man continued. The other one was oddly silent.

Here Luciano said something but it was too quiet for Quistis to hear.

"Yeah! Well, we've been through many things too! Did you know that Ward fell from a cliff and lost his voice?"

"What? Oh, man - I'm so sorry," Luciano somberly said. "I should have been there for you."

"You also missed your sister's wedding. We both went in your place."

Luciano sounded as if he had choked.

"Patty married?" Luciano had a sister?

"Yes - ten years ago. You have three nephews and two nieces, by the way. We've kept a connection with your family even more than that, you know? After you disappeared."

"How are my parents? Are they well?" he finally managed to say, after a moment of silence.

"Healthy as horses. I guess that living all their lives by the countryside has a good effect on them."

A sigh of relief.

"_Oh_. I'm glad. I'm really, really glad." His voice broke in the end.

"You alright, Laguna?" The dark man sounded worried.

_Laguna... Laguna_... _Is__ that Luciano's real name__?_ Quistis wondered.

"...Yeah. It's just... I've missed so much..."

It was here Quistis finally felt terrible for listening to such a private conversation. She also felt bad for Luciano. Or Laguna. Or whoever he was.

She was just about to sneak away and return to the caravan, when the dark man's next words stopped her on her tracks.

"_Why_ did you miss it? Why did you disappear? You didn't visit, you didn't write to anyone. You didn't call. And I realize that telephone calls were very expensive back then, but still... You should have given us some sign that you were alive, and not rotting somewhere. Your family - _we all_ were worried sick. What happened? Why look for us only now?"

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It is quite stunning how when you set out to seek your fortune luck decides to hit you full force. In Laguna's case, dear reader, you'll find out how literal this is to be taken. Because in his case, on one beautiful afternoon, he was almost smashed by a flying castle.

Laguna had traveled around for a week, sleeping in motels and doing all kinds of odd jobs for a room. He had sometimes slept on the road (as it was too dangerous to sleep in the woods where all varieties of monsters, beasts and - Hyne forbid! - T-Rexes loomed). But even the road wasn't safe anymore, it appeared. From _flying buildings_, at that.

Laguna had never seen anything more peculiar in all his life (and during the last four years he had seen all kinds of things, really).

Thankfully, he wasn't hit - and only missed by a centimeter - but he did fall on the ground. This left him severally disheveled and flabbergasted.

Soon the enormous structure landed nearby and a few people emerged from its gates. They appeared to be a nurse, two soldiers and a young man in a red vest.

"Oh, Hyne! Oh, _fuck_!" The man in the red vest was yelling in panic. "Doctor Kadowaki! That's the man!" Soon Laguna found the nurse fretting over him and checking him for a concussion and the like. "I'm so sorry!" The man kept repeating. "My father recently died leaving me to navigate and manage this Academy. I'm quite new at this, never really piloted the damned thing, save for the few times when I sneaked inside the control room... but then I was younger and foolish, and... Oh, I'm sorry! I'm rambling, aren't I? And here you are, probably almost within an inch of losing your life because of my incompetence..."

"No, no. I'm alright actually," Laguna choked. He really was fine. Physically, at least. "How does this thing _fly_? This is cosmically amazing!"

Cid regarded him wryly. "Thanks to a special sky-stone. It is powered by magick," the man in the red vest told him as soon as the nurse - Doctor Kadowaki - confirmed that Laguna indeed wasn't on the verge of dying.

"I'm really glad you're well. But please, come inside if you wish. I owe you at least a cup of tea, and some food maybe?"

Laguna nodded thankfully - he had been feeling faint from hunger all day. One of the reasons he hadn't noticed the flying structure till it was almost too late, actually.

"My name is Cid Kramer, by the way," the man - Cid - said, extending a hand to help him stand up.

"Laguna Loire," the boy said, taking it.

The castle, Military Academy 'Balamb Garden', he later learned it was called, seemed even huger from inside and Laguna found himself looking around with mouth agape.

"Wow," was the only thing he managed to say.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Cid commented.

Laguna nodded, still dazed.

They entered the Headmaster's office (not unlike the one in Galbadia). Laguna and Cid sat in cushions between which was a glass table. The office was full of all kinds of bizarre objects and paintings.

One of them was the portrait of a beautiful young woman with long hair of a rich color and piercing eyes.

"That is my mother, Minerva Kramer," Cid told him, when he noticed the boy staring. "She, alongside my father, was the one who reconstructed Balamb into a flying building. She was famous for that. And for her beauty, of course. She died when I was a child."

Soon, a woman that was most likely Cid's assistant - her name was Xu, the boy later learned - came with tea and cakes. Hardly the most healthy food, but tasty and satiating all the same.

Cid and Laguna struck up a conversation and found out that they quite liked each other. When Cid learned of the unfortunate recent events in Laguna's life, he immediately offered him a job in his Academy. Laguna gladly agreed.

Just how easily can luck come and knock you off on its way...

"Now, Mr. Loire, since you're new here, I suppose that a welcome celebration is in order," Cid said as they stood an hour later.

"A what?"

"Tonight we will go to Deling, a wonderful city near out current coordinates. Has the best evening entertainment!"

Thus, an hour and a half later, Laguna found himself sitting at a table in a piano bar full of clatter and music.

"What do you think?" Cid asked loudly over the noise. "Do you like it here?"

"It's fantastic!" Laguna yelled. "Do you come here often?"

Cid looked at the waitress that served them with a fond look on her face.

"Thank you," he told her with a wink before turning back to his new-found friend. "I come here whenever I need to get away from the Academy. Life can get... restless there. Deling can sate most any adventure-seeking soul," the man explained, looking thoughtfully at his glass. "Well - most any, as I said."

Laguna wondered which kind Cid was.

Three glasses later, they swayed their way through the streets of the city, searching for a way that would lead them out to where Balamb Garden was parked.

"Why don't you give this poor old man a gil, so that he could buy himself some bread?" A beggar asked them from a dark corner.

"I'm sorry," Cid said in a bit slurred manner. "But we really don't have any more money - we didn't take much, since we kind of... sneaked away."

They heard the beggar cough a laugh.

"So no one knows you're here? Perfect!"

Before Laguna knew what was happening, they were in a fight. The street was flooded with a dozen men, each of them wearing midnight blue clothes, predator's eyes and well-polished weapons.

Luckily, Cid never went anywhere without his own, with which he struck one of the men down, took his sword and passed it to Laguna.

Though the boy was proud of the number of attackers he defeated, he could only admire the grace and the power of Balamb Garden's leader.

When the last of their enemies had fallen, Laguna turned to Cid:

"Who do you think they worked for? Or were they simply thieves?"

"They were not thieves - they had heard us say we don't have money. I say they worked for someone." Cid shrugged. "Look at their clothes." He motioned under the flickering light of a lamp-post. "These are fine clothes and all in the same design. This means they are working for someone rich."

Laguna nodded.

"Let's go home," his friend said, and by then they were both completely sober.

Home... Laguna liked to imagine he'd one day think of this beautiful building as precisely that.

They returned to Balamb without anymore bumps on the road.

In the few months at Balamb Garden that followed, Laguna Loire could safely say that he was a happy person.

Somehow, he learned more swordsmanship than he had in his four years in Galbadia, but whether due to Cid being such a good teacher, or the lack of pressure by his patron, he did not know.

Sure, he missed his friends from his old Academy, but they exchanged letters and the connection was not lost.

His friendship with Cid also grew, along with his comfort in the new home.

But his luck was as fickle as the winds, and those peaceful times soon also ended with the letter that Cid received one late February afternoon.

_My love,_

_I know our affair ended so suddenly more than a year ago, but something had begun then - a life. Our treasure has the hair and the eyes of your mother__and it breaks my heart each time I lay my eyes upon these features and know you're not with us. I am sorry that I tell you this most important news so late, four months after your heir was born, but my father kept me in seclusion in the near__by__ monastery, and I came home only a few days ago._

_Now he threatens to disown me if you don't come to marry me, and I find myself compelled to write to you__in hope that you will help me in this desperate situation. He is so sure that you will come that he has already __planned our __wedding - it will be on the first of March. He hasn't even considered how humiliated our family will be if you don't show up._

_If there is even an ounce of the love we shared that remains in your heart, then please listen to my plea._

_Forever yours,_

_Edea Alistair_

Cid finished reading the letter to Laguna, his eyes shining. Even his office had attained an odd sort of joyous glow.

"A father, my friend!" The man exclaimed. "I'm a father!"

"But what of the mother?" Laguna asked, warily.

Cid looked at the sky in a daze.

"Edea... she is a lovely, beautiful woman. We shared a passionate relationship fourteen months ago while I was on a mission for the Garden... But then my father died - food poisoning they said - though I am sure he was murdered. I'm confident that someone has plans to take over Balamb Garden, and I have my suspicions but... Anyways - I had to return here, and assaulted with all kinds of assistants, places to go and things to do, I could not find the time to go to her. Eventually, when she didn't write, I assumed she had forgotten me... But never in a thousand years would I have thought that this - _this!_ - was her reason!"

"So you... uh- love her?" Laguna asked.

"As I love the air!" Cid replied with the certainty of a man who had his heart stolen.

"Then when will we go?"

"_We_?" Cid regarded him. Laguna smiled unabashedly and rubbed the back of his neck.

"You wouldn't want to go to your own wedding alone, right? Without a best man as awesome as me?"

His friend looked at him with those piercing eyes of his - eyes he had inherited from his mother - and for a moment Laguna regretted his presumptuous offer.

But then Cid smiled and the boy sighed in relief.

"We'll go as soon as we can, in order to be on time for my wedding," he declared.

"And when is that?"

"Tomorrow night. I'll call Xu now - to tell her of my plans. So if you'll excuse me..." Cid trailed off and hurriedly exited the room.

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Quistis heard Luciano take a deep breath.

"After I dropped out of Galbadia, I went to Balamb Garden, as you already know from my letters. There I befriended this amazing, wonderful guy, Cid Kramer."

Quistis knew that name. She had heard it at nights when Luciano was having nightmares.

"So what? You two fell in love or something? Come on, Laguna, you know we wouldn't have abandoned you for something like being gay."

"I - I'm not _gay_!" The man said with outrage.

Quistis found herself thinking: _good_.

After a few moments in which Luciano was calming down from the obviously ridiculous, he continued: "So, one day my friend received a letter. From his former lover, Edea, who informed him that she had given birth to his child and that her father insisted they get married. Since Cid still loved her, he went. I accompanied him as the best man. We headed to Centra."

Judging by his somber tone, Quistis had the feeling that she wouldn't like the ending of this story.

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It was a long ride to Centra - they traveled by chocobos and passed many beautiful views by the way. Since the Alistair mansion was on an island, they reached it by a boat.

Once they were back on solid earth, the two friends raced to the seashore where the residence was.

"May the _best man_ win!" Laguna shouted, as he rushed past Cid.

Finally, they reached their destination (Cid had won the race) - and Laguna at the magnificent building. Edea's house appeared as if from the ancient past.

A young woman (Laguna presumed it was Cid's wife-to-be) was waiting for them before it. Laguna had to admit that she was a beauty of no comparison. Her long, raven black curls were dancing with the wind, and he thought she looked like an angel.

Cid dismounted his chocobo and ran to her.

Laguna averted his eyes from this intimate moment of reunion.

"Where is my son?" Cid asked, when that moment was over. "I want to see the heir of Balamb Garden!" Edea was about to answer when -

"There you are!" A shout thundered out. Laguna jumped from surprise and surmised it was Edea's father. He was a dark man, like his daughter and he was holding a bloodied axe.

"Finally!" Edea's father stalked towards Cid so quickly that Laguna was sure his friend was a done deal. But Edea's father embraced him like a long lost brother.

"I'm glad you came to defend my daughter's honor. For a moment I was beginning to doubt your coming." The man wiped the axe with a handkerchief that was hanging from the pocket of his pants.

"Whyever would you doubt my pure intentions, Mr. Alistair?" Cid asked. Edea's father regarded him with a wry gaze.

"It _is_ only a day before the wedding, after all."

"I'm sorry - we came as fast as we could after receiving the letter. This is Laguna Loire, by the way. He's my best man."

Mr. Aistair smiled dryly. "The best boy, you mean."

Laguna laughed. "Just think of me as a boy with a man's heart!"

"Never mind that," Edea interrupted. "Let us go inside. It is quite chilly here." Indeed it was.

"Alright." Her father agreed. "I'll just return to the hen house - we were thinking about having a chicken soup for lunch."

After said lunch, Edea and Cid went to see the child and Laguna was assaulted by seamstresses who were measuring him for a proper, suitable costume for the upcoming event. Very soon, Cid joined the chaos, only that he was a part of many more preparations - being the groom and all that.

Dinner with the in-laws was a quick affair that passed between last moment check-ups and going to bed (the two friends were decidedly tired from all the travel, and even more so from the day with the Alistair family, and didn't even mind having to sleep in the same bed in the - bizarrely - only free guest-room in this giant house).

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She heard Luciano's friend gasp. "Don't tell me that this Edea was Edea _Alistair_... The massacre of Centra... We heard of the tale. Thought it was bull shit, though. Three whole villages and so many aristocrats..."

"The tale isn't exaggerated, I'm afraid." Luciano said gravely. "All these people were murdered because of a bastard's pretences for Balamb."

Kiros was momentarily stunned. Finally he spoke. "But what happened after the massacre? Why didn't you come back?"

"I was looking after Cid's child, the true heir of Balamb Garden. We've been hiding in a troupe of traveling actors for the past seventeen years, because Master Norg is still after us. And now I've heard that the famous Kiros Seagill and Ward Zabac are in the city where our troupe is staying for a few weeks and I couldn't just _not_ see you, guys." Quistis had heard this name too, Master Norg, when Luciano was moaning in his nightmares.

The insinuation of his words astonished Quistis so greatly _(Irvine is Cid Kramer's son?)_ that she lost her balance and fell, knocking down a near garbage bin. It toppled with a mighty crash.

"Who's there?" she heard Luciano shout, heard him rush to where she was hidden.

Before she could run away, as stated at the beginning of our story, he grasped her hand and she could see the surprise in his eyes as he realized who she was...

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The wedding came in a blink, literally. Cid and Laguna, though they had instantly fallen asleep, had gone to bed at three a.m., and were awoken for the big day at five.

The main ceremony also passed not before long, and the good part of the wedding - the feast - followed.

There had been two celebrations - one for the aristocratic friends of the family, and one held especially for the people of the nearby villages - the Alistairs had been their benefactors for generations, after all.

The feast for the nobles had a sense of grandeur and Laguna half-imagined he was a duke at a king's wedding. There was much music and dancing, much laughter, much food and much amorousness (couples were hiding in closets, in bedrooms, in bushes...).

At some point, when it was already so late that the sun was beginning to rise again, the people began to doze off on the long tables filled with half-eaten food (Laguna not excluded).

He later woke to ugly, familiar sounds - of pierced flesh and smothered cries that only dying men make. His leg went numb.

_Damn it, now is not the time!_

Laguna felt around for the nearest knife and opened his eyes. To his horror, he saw that the room was full of men in midnight blue uniforms, murdering the guests in their sleep.

He looked around, searching for Cid and Edea, but found them nowhere (which was a good thing when he thought about it - it meant that there was a chance they hadn't fallen victim to this massacre). However, he saw Edea's parents – dead - and his heart clenched.

Laguna jumped suddenly, and - using the attackers' surprise - made his way through the hallway.

"Cid?" he called, searching through every room. The naked bodies of the couples that had hidden there previously made him physically sick. After he felt fit to walk again, he continued the search for his friend, fighting off many more men in blue through the way.

Laguna finally found Cid outside of the building, near a distressed looking - but still tied to a tree - chocobo. Cid was holding his infant in one arm, battling two masked Shumi with the other. The larger creature was richly clothed and appeared to be the leader of the whole thing.

"Cid!" Laguna cried in relief, and rushed to help the man.

Just as he was a few steps away, the bigger shumi pierced Cid Kramer's chest.

"No!" Laguna shouted - a quick, gut-wrenching sound, before he slaughtered the lesser monster and hurriedly engaged the leader in a battle of his own.

"Bujuru...Do you think you can win with nothing but a dinner knife at your defense, boy?" The creature shouted and for a second Laguna wondered if it was deaf.

The boy said nothing, but he did manage to stab the shumi's hand.

It seemed enough for this coward to run away.

Laguna didn't have in mind to chase after it, instead deciding to run to his friend's side.

The afflicted wound appeared fatal, and the boy choked a sob as Cid looked at him. He had not yet fallen upon the ground, but was resting his back on a tree by sheer will-power, refusing to fall so as to not crush his son.

"Take the baby," the father hissed and not a second after the child was in Laguna's arms, slumped to the ground.

"Cid!" Laguna knelt beside him, but Cid motioned him to listen to what would be his last words.

"Take care of my child... He is the only true heir to Balamb Garden..." Balamb Garden's leader said in rasped breath. "Do not let it be known you've survived this massacre... otherwise Norg... - the leader of those bastards... - will find a way to murder you both... Please, my friend... vow to me you'll do me this one... favor."

"But... what about Edea?" Laguna cried out.

"We... got separated... I think... she's already... dead."

"Then I vow! I vow that I will look after your child! And when he's of age, I will help him reclaim his place in Garden! I will avenge you, my friend! This Norg - this coward - will fall by my weapon!"

But Cid was already gone - the light had left his eyes the moment Laguna said 'child'.

Soon he heard the enemies behind him, no doubt drawn by the baby's cries. Without further thought, Laguna quickly mounted the chocobo and rode it as fast as he could. He did not turn to look back.

As the chilly wind was biting at him, bruising his face, and brutishly wiping away his tears, Laguna felt his old life being blown away by it. He cradled the treasure in his arms closer, for the comfort that was denied him by anyone else.

He did not know where to go. Maybe somewhere near Esthar. But he could not go back to anyone he'd known - he did not want to put them at risk should Norg find them too early.

It started to snow, but Laguna knew that neither ice, nor water, nor snow would manage to cleanse the bloody earth behind him.

The pureness of this snow cut at his heart, a heart which was now denied such illusions of goodness and purity, and at that moment, Laguna detested those falling snowflakes.

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Upon seeing her face, Luciano relaxed somewhat.

"Quis." He had the habit of calling her thus. "What are you doing here?"

She looked at him, ashamed of her reason for being there; shocked by what she had learned.

Luciano lifted her chin, looking at her softly. She did not know why, but she felt her own heart soften a bit. His green eyes always had the habit of doing that - melting her like butter on a slice of freshly baked bread.

"I'm sorry. I eavesdropped on your conversation." His face darkened at this. "I apologize." Feeling too uncomfortable to do anything else, Quistis hurried back to the caravan.

"Quistis, wait!" She heard Lucian- Laguna call from behind her, but did not stop.

…..

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…

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.

Laguna rarely stopped for a rest, because it was getting even colder and the infant was crying in his arms.

Thankfully - not too far away from the massacre, but not too near - he found refuge in an empty farm. He dismounted the chocobo (the boy felt stiff from riding it for so long) and, hugging the child close to him as if for courage (he was never good at asking other people for help... no, he was never good at speaking to other people, period), he knocked on the door.

It turned out that he needn't have worried, because the house was unoccupied.

Laguna briefly wondered if the owners had gone to the cursed wedding.

The celebration now seemed as from a different era, and not just a few hours ago.

His heart fell as he noticed the unwashed mugs half-full of coffee, the sliced bread from what might have been the owners last breakfast.

The baby was still crying, so the boy went to the stables and milked one of the two cows. He then ignited a fire in the fireplace and put a pot there, which soon started rilling from the heat.

But when Laguna tried to feed the wee thing but didn't want to drink. He even tried the milk- it wasn't too hot.

Worried that the child could come down with a fever during the ride through the chilly countryside, Laguna felt its forehead for a temperature, but thankfully - all was well.

His long experience with Patty made him wonder if it needed a change of diapers.

Wrinkling his nose, Laguna took off the baby's cloak, its rompers and the -now clearly full – diaper.

And he received the shock of his life.

Cid had not had a son. He had had a daughter.

Looking back, Laguna wondered at their combined idiocy. What had made them assume so assuredly that it was a male?

Wrinkling his nose even more, Laguna used a part of a nearby found shirt to clean the baby, and another - as a new diaper. Ew. He had been traumatized enough by his sister.

Finally clean and calmed, the baby agreed to drink the milk.

Laguna himself didn't feel hungry after all he had witnessed that day so he simply threw a few more logs into the fire and laid on a nearby bed, but not before resting the child in a cradle, for it appeared that the owners of this farm had had a child of their own.

The thought made him ill at the stomach.

The next morning Laguna learned something - the name of Cid's daughter. It was inlaid in her cloak.

Quistis.

…..

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.

As soon as Quistis neared the caravan, she had to hide for the second time that night as she saw the suspicious men in midnight blue clothes again. They were shouting something menacing.

"Where are they?" one of them demanded.

"Who?" It was Raine! Quistis was about to rush to her aid, when - luckily for her, as she would soon realize - she felt an arm around her waist and a hand on her mouth.

"Shhh, it's alright. It's me," Luciano whispered. Quistis sighed. He released his hand, but kept the protective hold of his arm.

The man in midnight blue was speaking again.

"The blond actress and the author! Where are they? Master Norg has been looking for them for a long time."

"Said blond actress, _sir,_ is my niece. And the _author_ is my longtime lover."

Quistis blinked rapidly at the news - she knew Luciano and Raine had been occasionally together for quite some time, but she hadn't known it was _quite_ that serious. She felt Luciano wince next to her.

"How long have they been traveling with you?" the man, who was apparently the head of this…horde, asked.

"For as long as I can remember," Raine calmly replied.

"_How long?_" the man persisted

"Oh, I don't know..."

"_Tell me how long!_"

"...Seventeen years, I think," Raine finally said.

"Seventeen years! It matches!" one of the other man exclaimed. "So Master Norg _had_ been right - the Kramer bastard lives!"

"I wonder how he recognized her though..." Another trailed off. "I had always assumed that the heir was a boy."

The leader hurried to explain, obviously feeling that he was a big deal since he knew the truth. "Master Norg holds a few... mementos from the old Headmaster - including a portrait of Cid's mother, Minerva. So today, chief wanders across the Estharian streets and sees a girl with a remarkable likeness to that long dead woman. For years he had been certain that the Kramer child was a boy, but the presence of the man who had once stabbed his hand beside the girl raised his suspicions."

Back behind the corner of the street, Quistis was silently crying and Luciano was holding her tightly in an attempt to comfort her.

"We have to run away," he whispered into her ear as they watched the men in midnight blue continue to threaten Raine. The rest of their family had come out from the caravan by now, alarmed by the noises, and were being threatened too.

"We can't run away!" Quistis hissed. "We can't leave _them_ -"

"What can we do then? Normally, I'd just rush impulsively, but I... I made a promise to your father, Quis. I can't - I _won't_ let anything happen to you. And these men will surely kill you." His words both pained her heart and made it flutter.

"But what about Musica and Ellone and Irvine and Raine?"

She felt his hand clench into a fist.

"They won't be harmed... They're innocent."

"The people... on my parents' wedding night were also innocent!"

Luckily, just at this moment, a local military was passing by and the men in blue scattered (but not before promising that they'd come back).

As soon as the pair in hiding were sure that they were gone, they rushed to the shaken family and hurriedly bid them farewell, but not before taking some much needed personal belongings.

"I will miss you!" Quistis cried after them as the caravan was already drawing speed and becoming smaller and smaller on its way out of Esthar.

"We will see each other again!" Musica called back.

"Yes we will!" Luciano shouted. "But not before the danger has passed!"

…..

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.

When in the next few days the owners of the farm did not return, Laguna's suspisions were almost confirmed: they had been victims of the massacre.

He stayed at the house, taking care of the animals there, as well as the baby, all the while trying to figure out what deities he had impressed so poorly.

It was easier for him because of Quistis - the kid was like sunshine and rainbows, now that she was in a warm, cozy house.

It all changed again in April, when they met a troupe of traveling artists. The artists were also a family - a woman, Raine Leonheart, her sister - Ellone, Ellone's husband - Musica Trepe, and their adopted son - Irvine, who was still a baby like Quistis.

They had taken refuge in the house, much like Cid's daughter and Laguna had two months before, because Irvine had been with fever and they had needed to stay somewhere warm - not simply a cold caravan. The little boy soon got better and Musica offered Laguna a place with the troupe, with Quistis, of course.

Laguna gladly agreed - the mountains were far too lonely for his liking. But he had one other condition - that Musica's family would raise her as their own. At eighteen, he was in no way ready to look after her.

Musica and Ellone agreed, and from then on, life became peaceful.

They traveled around the world, Laguna wrote their plays and acted in them (their biggest success was a play called _'The Sorceress' Knight'_). He was often told by many people (especially Raine, who had become his on-off lover throughout the years, though their relationship never grew into anything deeper) that he was a man with many faces and even more talents.

And then, almost in a blink, seventeen years passed and Master Norg was beginning to panic again, lest the true heir to Balamb Garden should come to claim his birthright.

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"Luciano..." Quistis murmured, as she leaned her head upon his shoulder. They had been sitting on a cold bench for the last couple of hours. "What if I don't want to claim my birthright? What if I want to travel with you?"

Luciano caressed her hair in a soothing fashion and told her:

"We can't always be running away, Quis. Sooner or later, either Norg will find us, or your destiny. Most likely - both at the same time. Knowing my luck, especially. Be brave."

"And what is my destiny?" she asked softly, feeling extremely tired.

"Well..." he began, his voice like the first rays of the morning sun before them. "You belong to a world of glamour and golden dresses, no doubt. Waltzes and greatness and high-class events. You can't run away forever from who you are, Quistis Kramer. You wouldn't want to. But, I will help you return to the life you were born for, I promise."

And somehow, Luc - _Laguna's_ words breathed bravery into her, and she felt she could face everything and everyone.

But she had to wonder, as he spoke so velvety: where was the place of the enigma in her life?

…..

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.

_Part 2:_

A greasy-haired man with large glasses and a large nose was waiting in front of Master Norg's office. The door opened and Norg's giant figure appeared between the door's frames.

"You Loki della Torre?" the creature yelled. The man nodded, gulping. "Bujurururu. Come inside." The man complied. "Why do you wish to become my personal assistant?" the shumi asked once he settled behind his desk.

"Because I can be a good accountant, a loyal subordinate, and most importantly - I've heard many rumors about you, Master Norg..." The greasy-haired man smiled a greasy smile. "And I can guard secrets. With me by your side, _no one_ would hear such rumors."

Master Norg regarded him thoughtfully for a long moment.

"Bujururu... and what's in for you?"

"I want only a good pay so I can support my girl."

"Your girl, bujururu? Wife or daughter?" Norg inquired.

"Fiancée. I'm the only family she has... for now. We hope to have many little ones in the near future... which is another reason why I want to be able to get a good salary."

"Bujururu! How wonderful! If only the world was filled with more people like you, so truly in love with their lovers... then this whole place would be full of greasy-haired brats like you! Bujurururu!" He laughed.

The corners of the glass-eyed man's lips twitched, in a fashion that suggested he knew a mystery no one else did.

"Perhaps," was the only thing Loki said.

The interview continued for a few more minutes, but eventually Loki della Torre was hired.

He asked when he was to move into Garden, and Norg informed him that they would depart from Esthar in a few weeks, making it 'advisable' to be by then (Loki was also allowed to bring his fiancée).

Loki's work would begin immediately, so as soon as he was away from the vicinity of the flying academy's, he headed towards his home, an old, abandoned building.

There - by the window, on an old chair - sat a blond girl. She heard his steps and turned towards him, smiling widely, then went to him and kissed his cheek. Before he could even notice, her hands were at the back of his head, yanking at his hair until the wig that had been upon his head fell into her grasp. Laguna's long hair fell around his shoulders.

He, once again, mentally thanked his friends from the troupe for giving him the stuff required for his plan.

"How did it go?" Quistis asked as he removed the fake, wax nose.

"I got it. I got the job, Quis. Though, once I entered the building I couldn't stop being reminded that this was once my school, no matter how short my stay." Quistis smiled. "I kept asking myself what had I done to deserve this - going to school every day, never mind that my purpose was not to study. Well, the normal things studied in Balamb at least - and not a way to overthrow the Headmaster... though one would wonder… By the way - what's for dinner?"

Quistis chuckled. "Nettle soup and freshly baked bread."

It suddenly struck Laguna how much they sounded like an actual couple.

His stomach (and heart) did a somersault at the news of dinner and he felt his feet carrying him to their improvised kitchen (it contained a stove, a table and four chairs, all of them donated by Kiros and Ward).

"Fantastic! I'm starving."

"Oh, and Laguna!" Quistis called after him.

"Yes?"

"You're still wearing the glasses!" she giggled, holding her sides with merriment (she always did this whenever she was amused by something in someone she liked).

He doubted she realized she had feelings for him yet. He half-heartedly wished she didn't.

…..

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.

The next day Quistis decided to sneak away the moment Laguna was off? and explore Esthar. She tied back her hair and hid it behind an old hat of Laguna's and she put on some pants and a vest. Now she doubted she would be likened to the woman in Balamb Garden's portrait.

While she was striding though the streets of the city, she saw the two Uncles (that was how she'd started to call Laguna's two slightly older friends in her mind).

She ran towards them.

"Princess?" Just as she had started calling them Uncles, she had been dubbed 'princess'. The two men laughed when she nodded and each took her by the elbow.

"We were just about to have lunch in 'La Rosa'," Kiros told her. "D'you want to come with us?" Ward smiled at her.

"Of course!"

Quistis smiled back at Ward and thought that these two reminded her of twins, no matter their differences.

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Norg had gone for a lunch and 'Loki' decided to take advantage of his brief absence. He searched the drawers, behind the paintings - everywhere for anything that would help him find a way to destroy him and legally restore Quistis to her rightful place. She was almost eighteen, the date of her birthday wasn't that far off - just a week away actually.

He wasn't successful, though - it appeared that Norg was very good at hiding all important documentation.

Just as he was checking the bookshelf one last time, the Headmaster returned.

'Loki' sighed. Maybe another time…

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.

"So, Princess, do you like the new house?" Kiros asked over a table full of food at an Estharian eatery.

Quistis nodded, her mouth still full of the delicious rice with vegetables. Once she swallowed, she answered. "It might be a bit cracked at places but I love it there. Only… " She trailed off.

"Only what?"

"Only if it wasn't so lonely… Laguna is often away and I have nothing to do but explore the empty rooms, cook and wait for him. I'm just not that kind of a woman. Sure, he brings me books, seeing as I love those things, but… I really want to be able to go outside more often. To explore the world. Not to hide away in fear that someone will recognize me for who I really am and surrender me to Norg. I want to be brave. But I can't be brave now. Not when he…" _Not when he is at risk and I care about him too much to be careless._

The uncles regarded her with pity.

She flinched - she despised being pitied. She was far too proud for that.

"But never mind that," she continued with a sigh. "It will all end soon, I gather."

The uncles nodded with a smile.

"Of course it will."

They ate in silence for a while, but after a few minutes Quistis noticed that Laguna's friends kept exchanging glances, as if debating something mutely.

"What is it?" she finally asked.

"Well…" Kiros began. "We were wondering if…" He looked at her intensely, as if he were too uncomfortable to ask the question and was willing her to understand it by his silence. When he saw that her face was nonchalant, he continued at last: "What do you feel for Laguna?"

Now it was her turn to feel uncomfortable.

"What do I feel for Laguna…?" she repeated, thoughtful. I suppose I am in love with him," she quietly confirmed.

"You do?" The dark, handsome man choked on his food a bit - unhandsomely. Quistis wrinkled her nose.

"I do. I've figured it out just recently. But I guess that I've been falling for him for a while. Longer than I would have guessed, actually." Her eyes suddenly shot at the two men, fiercely. "But don't tell him that. I'll be the one to do it, when the time is right…

"Now, in the midst of such important events, I can imagine exactly how he'll react." During the last few months she had gotten to know Laguna Loire better (it seemed as if now, when she finally knew the truth about her roots, he was a lot more comfortable with her). But if she was to confess to him her feelings then… he'd surely reject her, for many reasons.

The Uncles nodded.

"We won't." Kiros assured her.

…..

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.

In the end, Laguna found the clue he had been searching for while doing his own job for Norg.

He had been going over bills when he saw the address of the Alistairs upon one of them. He wondered why Balamb would donate funds to them. Apparently he had voiced his thought, seeing as Master Norg (Laguna's desk was in his office) replied:

"A little good will, bujururu. It is an orphanage founded by a survivor from that unfortunate event, bujurururu, the massacre, seventeen years ago. Saw it while Garden was on the move, actually, bujururu. I took pity on the woman taking care of the children. Everyone calls her 'Madam Sorceress', bujurururu, because it appears that she can do blue magic. Bujururu! But now the orphanage doesn't need as much money, because Madam Sorceress looks after only a couple of children now. Bujururu! So we're reducing the bills."

It suddenly struck the man, as he watched Norg's gloved hand move while he was writing, that the only woman who would be able to legally remake the Alistairs' home into an orphanage could only be… _her_.

So _she_ might not have died that night.

Laguna made a mental note to ask Norg for a three day vacation - he might as well lie that he was finally getting married - and smiled.

As soon as he was able, he was going back to Centra.

Because the only person who would be able to help them, and recognize Quistis as the rightful heir to Balamb Garden, was Edea Kramer.

…..

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.

"Must you really go, Laguna?" Quistis asked him gravely as he mounted the chocobo he had rented.

"Yes. I told you - I'll find your mother, Quis."

"Can't I come with you?" she asked, though she knew the answer already.

"It would be too dangerous. Centra is especially the place where we could be recognized the most."

Quistis looked down in disappointment, but Laguna lifted her chin and smiled one of his reassuring, sunny smiles.

"It will be alright, Quis. Cheer up. In no more than three days, I'll be back to you with your mother. The roads are safer and faster now than they were seventeen years ago."

"Have a safe journey, Laguna. I hope it will be a successful one as well." Her friend kicked the chocobo's sides and departed.

"Of course I will!" He shouted with optimism, before disappearing from the view.

Quistis smiled and her heart ached, soared and swelled in the same time.

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It was bizarre for Laguna - going back to the place where his life had changed.

It was bizarre too - that with each mile further away from the girl that was waiting for him, he was missing her just a bit more than the previous one.

In the afternoon, he finally smelt the sea in the air, heard its waves, saw its sands.

And then the orphanage loomed in the midst of it all, like a ruined ancient temple - equally sinister and reverent.

"Matron!" he heard a child shout, from inside the house. "Matron! There's a man outside! With a chocobo! And a sword!"

"Where, my boy?" said a woman's worried voice. Soon she came out of the dark building, a little boy gingerly walking behind her.

Laguna's throat caught when he saw her face.

Memories that had always haunted him assaulted his mind, memories of a friend long dead, the woman who was dear to him and how their lives should have been.

He wondered if Edea recognized him, and she apparently did, judging by the distraught look on her face.

"Mr. Loire?" she asked, absently drawing the little boy closer to her.

"Edea Kramer! You have no idea how glad I am to see you!"

Her face hardened.

"No one has called me by that name since the day of my cursed wedding. I simply go by Matron now...Though everyone else but these two children call me Madam Sorceress... What do you want?"

Laguna's mouth went dry.

"I am here to ask you to meet your daughter and recognize her as the rightful heir to Balamb Garden."

_Wonderful job, Laguna. So straight to the point she probably won't believe you._

"My daughter…" Matron began in a quiet, bitter voice, "was lost to me the day of the massacre."

"Lost, perhaps, but not permanently," Laguna told her. "In his final moments, your husband made me vow to him that I would take care of his heir. He thought you were already dead, you see, as you'd both been separated. I went to a nearby village and took care of your daughter, Quistis, until a troupe came and I offered them to take her in…"

The look Matron gave him was like a bolt of lightning, awe-inspiring.

"My daughter lives! And you gave her to a group of strangers?"

"No!" Laguna hurried to correct himself. "No! I was with her during the whole time! Watching after her." _Through __a __distance__, although __I sourly regret this distance now._

He opened his backpack and took out Quistis' baby cloak.

"It was with her, on the eve of the wedding. Do you remember, Edea?"

The woman nodded through her now falling tears.

"Why are you crying, Matron?" the little boy asked and wrapped his little arms around her.

"I just found that something I had long thought taken from me, is now being offered back. And I dare to hope again," she replied.

"But then… aren't you supposed to be happy?"

"I _am_ happy, Seifer. So happy that I don't know what else to do but cry."

Matron then turned to Laguna.

"For so many years I have been looking after motherless children, trying to fill the void that was left in me by wondering how my life would have turned out if I hadn't been a childless mother. Now I can at least see her again, and be there for her as I wasn't able to be before.

"_Thank you_, Mr. Loire. I _will_ come with you, but on one condition: the two children I've been taking care of will also be accompanying us, for I refuse to leave them. I'm their mother also, in all but blood." Matron then turned to Seifer. "Go wake Selphie."

The boy looked at the grown-up man before him, as if he had become his new hero and ran back to the orphanage, yelling:

"Selphie! We'll be adventuring!"

In the end, Laguna had to go to the nearest village and buy another chocobo (it felt nice, being able to afford so many things because of the big salary he received; Laguna wasn't a material man, but still - he felt good about himself).

He took Seifer up with him on his chocobo - riding for the little boy, it appeared, was better than any belated birthday present. Edea and Selphie were on the other bird.

They were on their way to Esthar, and with each mile, closer to the girl who was waiting for him. He felt a bit happier and his heart - a bit fuller.

…..

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.

The reunion between mother and daughter was as emotional and tearstained as expected, but - as it is irrelevant to our story - it will be skipped.

On the day before he had to return to Balamb, Laguna spoke to Kiros and Ward and asked of them a favor that would concern everyone's futures.

It was a week before the official event that was the ball in honor of Balamb Garden Academy's departing from Esthar. The event was also a political meeting of many leaders of important nations, so as for Esthar, to officially establish the end of its policy of isolationism.

This week passed in a blur (save for the day of Quistis' eighteenth birthday), and before he knew it, he was preparing the documents that would be needed in order for his plan to be fulfilled. The night of the ball was also the night when Quistis would be formally introduced to the world as Cid's daughter and claim her pretences for Balamb Garden. The marriage certificate for Cid and Edea's wedding was found, along with Quistis' birth certificate in which Cid was declared her father. Edea was taking her ID card, so that the mother would be able to prove that it was indeed Cid's widow that was recognizing the girl as their own.

At the moment Edea and Quistis were preparing for the ball, Kiros and Ward were, as stated previously, (still) away, and the children (Seifer and Selphie) were asleep in their beds.

Laguna had been looking through the window, lost in thoughts as his eyes wandered across the lights of Esthar, when the door of Quistis' room opened and her mother stepped out with a smile, already wearing a stunning dress in the color of petrol blue.

"Go to her," Edea bade him. "I think she needs to speak to you before it begins."

Laguna nodded bravely and entered the room (never minding that his leg had cramped up again).

Quistis was beautiful. Sitting on her bed with her dress and her long hair cascading around her, she looked like an angel of light, fallen from the skies.

Even though she was nothing like her mother - so different in their beauties they were - Laguna was somehow reminded of Cid's love on their wedding day.

"You're lovely," he murmured.

"Thank you, Laguna," Quistis accepted the compliment with a blush. "I-I take it you like the dress."

"The dress?" He now looked at it better - silks of silver and sky blue. "Oh, it's pretty too."

"_Laguna_!"

"What?"

"Nothing…" She frowned. "By the way, you're quite dashing yourself. Even with the glasses and the wig and the fake nose."

"Thanks." He muttered uncomfortably, rubbing the back of his neck (like he always did whenever he was flustered or nervous; and now he was both).

After a few seconds, she looked back at the floor again.

"I wanted to tell you something, before we go," Quistis told him. "If it doesn't end… well… I want you to know… I want you to know that…"

"I know," he said. Her eyes snapped up in surprise.

"You do?"

"Yes."

"Since when… I mean… this saves me a lot of discomfort… Are you _sure_ you know what I was about to say? Because I can't help but notice how…"

"Quistis." He stopped her, smiling.

"What?" she asked nervously.

"You're rambling."

"Oh. I'm sorry."

_For what? For being so beautiful and captivating that it feels to me__as though the sun and the moon rise from your smile? You shouldn't be sorry for anything._

"For rambling, that is."

His smile widened.

"Quis?"

"Yes."

"I'm in love with you too."

"Good." Was all she said before he kissed her and she promptly melted into his strong arms. The moment was over far too soon, seeing as they had to go (although right then he wouldn't have minded if they ran off to somewhere and lived in seclusion for the rest of their lives).

"Wow," Quistis told him at last.

"What?" he asked, grinning (he had the feeling that he wouldn't ever stop doing that).

"I _actually_ feel the butterflies!"

"You feel them?"

"You don't?" she asked, slumping.

"More like giant bats with me."

Quistis laughed.

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.

As they finally entered the ballroom of Balamb Garden, they were showered by the glamour of the event.

It was also the first time Quistis saw the place that would hopefully soon be returned to her, from the inside.

Her mother put an arm around her shoulder.

"This is the kind of life you were born for, Quistis," Edea told her.

The young woman wasn't sure if this was a comforting thought.

A few hours into the night, they finally were introduced to the president of Esthar.

He was a short man with mature, greedy eyes and Quistis had the bizarre thought that Laguna would do a better job.

Just as the man in question was saying 'Hello, I am honored to meet you, Mr. President', Quistis saw Norg (Norg saw her too and he hurriedly began making his way towards them).

"May I present you," she heard Laguna say, "Edea and Quistis Kramer."

She froze. _Now?_

"Kramer, you say… " The president looked at the two women in surprise.

Laguna, always to the point, reiterated it.

"Yes, Mr. President. This woman is Cid Kramer's wife, and the other - his daughter. We bring documents to prove it."

"I've heard rumors that Madame Edea was alive, but I've never known that she had given birth to a daughter. Why ever did she not claim her father's legacy?"

"Because we've been hiding from Master Norg all these years," Quistis spoke up.

"And why is that?"

"Because he was the one to murder my husband and everyone else on that event, seventeen years ago," Edea said. "And my daughter was hidden from his ever-seeing gaze, so as to not be reached by the same unfortunate fate."

"Bujurururu! Don't listen to those madmen, Mr. President!" Norg shouted from behind them.

"On the contrary, Master Norg," Laguna told his boss. "I believe you are the one that is mentally ill." He then turned to the leader of Esthar. "This is the creature that organized the whole massacre. He is the one who murdered my friend, Cid."

"Are you sure, Mr. Loire?" the president said, obviously having trouble comprehending such grave accusations.

"Bujururu! Mr. _Loire_?" Norg repeated. "You look nothing like Cid's friend, bujurururu!"

"Oh, don't I?" Laguna said, taking of his disguise.

That was how he'd metamorphosed - from a cheerful, naïve boy, to a cunning, intelligent man. Only for this moment of utter pleasure and revenge.

"Bujururu! You…!" Master Norg gasped and if possible - his skin paled a little.

But Laguna paid no further attention to the murderer.

"On the morning when Cid Kramer was slaughtered, I stabbed his killer, the leader of the men who were responsible for the massacre. He should still wear my scar. On his right hand."

The president turned to Garden's Headmaster.

"Well?" he urged.

"Well what?" Norg asked, a massive drop of sweat rolling on his brow.

"Take it off!"

"But, Mr. President! I am innocent! After all the negotiations and discounts we made during these two months, surely you wouldn't…"

In that exact moment, the doors of the ballroom swung open and Kiros and Ward entered, each holding the side of an impossibly big chest.

"What is this?" the president inquired.

"This is a… small donation, Mr. President," Quistis said with twinkling eyes (she hoped no one would notice how nervous she was at the moment). "From me, to Esthar. As of last week, I am of age and I have inherited my mother's fortune. I had sent these two kind friends," she motioned towards Kiros and Ward who grinned like wolves, "to retrieve a small part of it from a bank in Centra where it has been resting for the last seventeen years. My mother had not touched it during her time in the orphanage, where she had lived in seclusion, finding whatever joy she could acquire by looking after children.

"Mr. Loire, who currently works for Balamb has told me under great secrecy that the Garden is in poor financial state, but if I ever have the wonderful opportunity to inherit it too, I will invest in it with my mother's money. As I will invest in Garden's kind allies."

Kiros and Ward opened the chest and revealed it to be full of bars of golden gil.

"But… but this is bribery, bujurururu!" Master Norg shouted, even louder than before.

The president cleared his throat.

"Miss Kramer was merely showing us that she would do good for Garden. As for you, Master Norg, I am still expecting to see your right hand ungloved."

…..

….

…

..

.

Everyone in the hall was staring at them. More so now, after they had seen the golden glitter that came from the chest.

Norg was sweating as if it was a hot summer day in the desert, and not a mid-October Estharian night.

"_Master Norg_," the president continued after a few frozen moments. "If you don't take off that glove right now I'll tell my men to do it." The leader of Esthar's patience was wearing thin.

It certainly had been an eventful night for him.

Master Norg looked ready to run at any given moment, but he took off his glove. His naked hand revealed a scar from a sword-stab, that much was evident.

"Just a small wound I had acquired during my training with one of the students..."

"Nonsense!" Laguna roared.

Quistis caught Laguna's hand to stop him from throwing himself at Norg and choking him to death.

But the president was already motioning to his guards and they were coming for the shumi and revenge was sweet indeed…

And right then, Norg's men rushed through the back doors and a battle started in a blink. Many were running away from the hall, not wanting to become a part of a second massacre.

"Quistis! Edea! Go!" Laguna shouted.

"I'm not leaving you!" Quistis yelled and bravely grabbed a fallen sword.

"And I can help you with my magick!" Edea said calmly.

It was a worthy battle to be seen.

Not long into it though, and Laguna and Norg were dueling at the balcony.

"I've been waiting for this moment for years!" Laguna shouted.

"So have I, bujuru! No one injures me and gets away with it!"

"No one kills my friends and gets away with it!"

The end wasn't nearly as epic as Laguna had imagined it. Rather dissatisfying actually. During one of his attacks, Norg lost his balance and - because of his heavy weight –wasn't able to regain it again. The creature fell through the balcony, leaving Laguna staring down at him with a racing heart.

The men in midnight blue soon lost to the president's men (who, at some point, called for reinforcements).

…..

….

…

..

.

The next few months passed in a blur. Quistis was having trouble adjusting as the leader of a prominent military academy with great influence. Edea agreed to live with her, and took Seifer and Selphie as well.

Laguna was asked to become Quistis' second-in-command, her advisor.

'Because, you see, Laguna, I want to restore Balamb Garden to all its original glory as during the time of my father and grandfather. And who'd give me better advice on how to do it if not Cid Kramer's closest friend?' she had told him.

However, despite this new turn of events, their relationship was strained. Nonexistent, almost.

He wondered if it was because she was so busy, or if it was something else (perhaps she now saw how undeserving he was of her and regretted that kiss).

He never had much time to muse over this, though, because he himself was rather occupied, especially after Irvine joined Balamb Garden (thus becoming the first new student to study fully and solely during the Kramer's second management).

Which brings us to the moment when Laguna and Quistis could now properly say goodbye to the troupe of traveling artists (now only Raine, Musica and Ellone) who had refused to settle in one place and were headed to Fisherman's Horizon to gather new recruits.

As Quistis was embracing her parental figures, and Edea was thanking them for looking after her daughter for so many years, not without either party shedding tears, mind you, Laguna was saying a final goodbye to Raine.

"Do you think it would have worked out?" he couldn't help but ask. "Between us?"

Raine smiled sadly.

"I had wished many times that it would have. I had wished that you'd someday want a serious relationship and we'd marry and have a kid. I'd always wanted a son…" His ex-lover shook her head. "And maybe I'll have, one day. But not with you… We never had a chance, Laguna. You were always too focused on keeping your vow to your dead friend." Raine looked towards Quistis. "Take care of her. You were always her knight, weren't you?"

Then Quistis came to say goodbye to Raine, along with Edea and the troupe promised they'd visit - both to see their friends and Irvine. And then they were driving away. Edea had walked away too, during some point, and Quistis and Laguna found themselves alone, watching after the passing caravan. As they had eighteen years ago.

"What was it that Raine said in the end?" Quistis asked him, as they were walking back towards Garden.

"It's a stupid thing really…" Laguna felt a heat in his face.

"Tell me anyway," she insisted.

"Well, throughout the years she might have heard me say that I'd protect you always, from afar. Just like the knights had done with their fair ladies all those centuries ago."

"My knight?" Quistis repeated, a pitch too high.

"Yes, stupid thing, isn't it?"

"Listen, Laguna…" Quistis began. "There's something on my mind and it refuses to go off of it, ever since the night when everything changed."

_Everything_ _did_ change, didn't it?

"I know. I've been thinking about it as well. It was a mistake. Let's just act as if it never happened."

"A mistake?" Quistis repeated, and she stopped walking and looked even more distraught. Her cheeks were as red as they were when she had a temperature. Laguna felt frozen to the ground.

Sensing that it hadn't been the right thing to say (with much relief), he amended:

"No! It wasn't!" He sighed. "I'm sorry. I had assumed that this was what you thought and I didn't want to burden you with what I truly felt…"

"Laguna?" Quistis then told him, not without a smile. "Never again assume about a woman's feelings."

He closed the distance between them.

"Never," he agreed and it really was the last thing either of them could think of or speak for a while.

**The End**


End file.
